Heel shaping and drying attachment for hosiery-forms



. T. H. DE LACY, HEEL SHAPING AND DRYING ATTACHMENT FOR HOSIERY FORMS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY26. 1919.

1,355,317, v Patented Oct 12, 1920.

I III/Ill W gnaw V602 m ZHfle L may attoznmg PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS H. DE LACY, OF TRENTON, NEW JERSEY.

HEEL SHAPING AND DRYING ATTACHMENT FOR HOSIERY-FORMS.

Application filed. July 26, 1919.

T 0 (1 whom it may con cern Be it known that I, THOMAS H. Dn LACY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Trenton, in the county of Mercer and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in I-Ieel Shaping and Drying Attachments for Hosiery- Forms, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanyin drawings.

This invention relates to forms such as are used in drying hosiery, and particularly to means mounted upon the body of the form which will distend and shape the heel of a stocking as the stocking is being dried upon the form.

In hosiery forms there is no means provided for shaping and drying the heel of the stocking, and the primary object of this invention is to provide means in the form of a heel shaper which is attached to and forms part of the stocking form, and which is adapted to enter the heel of the stocking and hold it in proper position for drying.

A further object is to provide a device of this character in which the heel shaping member is shiftable upon the body of the form so as to adjust it for stockings of various sizes.

A further object is to provide a device of this character which will give a. perfect shape to the heel of any desired style of stocking.

And a further object is to provide a device of this character in which the shaping member is formed of metal and which, if applied to a metal, steam heated form, will become as hot as the form itself to thereby shape and dry the heel.

A further object is to provide a device of this character in which the heel shaping member is forced tightly against the drying form and thus does not in any way interfere with the operation ofthe form or the removal or replacement of stockings upon the form.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a face view of a portion of a stocking form with my heel shaper applied thereto;

F 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the construction shown in Fig. 1, showing Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

Serial No. 313,512.

diagrammatically a stocking applied to the form;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.;

Referring to these drawings, 10 designates a stocking drying form which may be of metal, wood or other material or composition, and which forms no part of my invention. If this stocking form is of metal, it is usually made hollow so that it may be heated by steam.

Mounted upon one face of the form 10 is a hollow, shaping and distending plate, designated 11, which is preferably metallic and which is transversely curved to suit the transverse curvature of the adjacent face of the form 10, and which, as illustrated, has forwardly inclined side edges so that the forward edge of the plate 11 is less in length than the rear edge of the plate. Attached to this strip is a supporting strip 12 which is made of thin, resilient metal and which extends rearward and is longitudinally slotted, as at 13, for the passage of adjusting screws or other like devices into the body of the form. The face of the form is to be provided'with index graduations with which an index point upon the shank 12 of plate 11 will coact. I have illustrated the form as being provided with a plurality of trans verse graduations 15 corresponding to different sizes of stockings, ran ing from number 8 to-number 101}, and I ave illustrated the forward edge of the plate 11 as coacting with these graduations.

In the actual use of this device, the stocking A is pulled on over the form until the heel of the stocking is disposed over the heel shaper 11. The operator then pulls upward, through the stocking, on the plate 11 and simultaneously forces the heel a over the plate in the manner illustrated in Fig. 2. Thus, the heel is spread and shaped by the member 11. By engaging the stocking in the manner above described, this shaping plate 11 not only acts to hold the heel in position but it also holds the foot of the stocking upon the form in proper position for drying. Inasmuch as the plate 11 conforms to the curvature of the form 10 and is urged snugly against this form 10, it is obvious that the operator may quickly and easily place the stockings on and take them oil of the form.

By changing the shape of the shaping plate 11, any shape of heel can be perfectly dried, or a heel can be shaped to any desired form. On metal hosiery forms, the device is particularly valuable, inasmuch as these forms are heated with steam and as the plate 11 is of metal, it becomes as hot as the form itself, thereby shaping and drying the heel disposed thereon. It will be obvious that as it fits snugly against the form 10, it will not in any way interfere with the operation of the form. 7

While I have illustrated a particular manner of mounting this plate 11 and holding it for adjustment, I do not wish to be limited thereto, as it is obvious that many changes might be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim '1. A hosiery form having upon one face thereof a heel shaping plate resiliently urged toward the face of the form but adapted to be pulled out into angular relation to the face of the form, said plate being adjustable longitudinally along the form.

2, A hosiery formhaving attached to one face thereof a longitudinally extending, resilient strip, and a heel shaping plate carried by said strip.

3. A hosiery form having a curved, outer face, a longitudinally extending, resilient strip mounted upon the face of the form,

,and a transversely curved, heel shaping plate mounted upon said strip.

4. YA hosiery form having a curved,-outer face, a longitudinally extending, resilient strip mounted upon the face of the form, and a transversely curved, heel shaping plate mounted upon said strip, the strip and plate being longitudinally adjustable along the form. V

5. A hosiery form having a curved, outer face, 'a longitudinally extending, resilient strip mounted upon the face of the form,

and a transversely curved, heel shaping slotted, and adjusting members passing through the slot in the strip and into the form. V

6. As an article of manufacture, a hosiery form, a longitudinally slotted strip of resilient metal disposed against the face of the form and connected thereto and carrying at its free end, a transversely extending heel plate, the heel plate having forwardly inclined side edges.

7. The combination with a metallic hosiery form, of a relatively thin, metallic heel shaping plate conforming to the adjacent face of the form, and means supporting the metallic plate upon the form so that the plate may be drawn into angular relation with the form, said means urging the plate 7 in contact with the form.

8. As an article of manufacture, a heel shaping device for hosiery forms comprising a relatively thin, transversely extending plate, and a strip attached thereto and extending parallel to the ends of the plate and in one direction therefrom and adapted to extendlongitudinally of the form, said strip being longitudinally slotted.

9'. The combination with a hosiery form,

of a heel shaping plate extending transthe plate and attached to the form whereby said plate may be shifted slightly away from the form to permit the insertion of a portion of a stocking heel between the shaping plate and the form.

In testimony whereof signature.

I hereunto aflix my THOMAS H. DE LACY. 

